We Need Daddy Forever
by deannaG
Summary: Max's worst nightmare is knowing that Alec will eventually die. Or will he? Max Grows Up in the Rune Series part 22.


The first two scenes popped into my head as I was going through my tumblr dash yeaterday afternoon. Tissues may be required. We'll talk more at the end.

Enjoy.

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Thirteen year old Max screams as he opens his eyes. He throws the covers off and gets out the bed. He runs out his room and slams into Alec. Max grabs his father and holds him tight as tears run down his face. He buries his face in his father's chest as Alec wraps his arms around his son.

Magnus stands behind Max and holds his son and husband. He and Alec look at each other over Max's head.

Alec kisses the top of his son's head, "Blueberry, it's okay."

Max shakes his head as he holds Alec tighter, "It's not okay, Daddy."

Magnus grips Alec's arm, "Max, tell us."

Max shakes his head, "No, Poppa."

Alec untangles himself from his son and husband. He holds Max's face in his hands and gently kisses his son's forehead, "It was only a nightmare Max, nothing more. Now come sleep with us." He wipes away Max's tears.

Max takes a deep breath, "Okay, Daddy." He looks at Magnus.

Magnus hugs him, "Only a bad dream, Max." He kisses his son's forehead.

Max swallows and nods, "I guess." He holds Magnus' hand as they walk into the master bedroom.

Max lays in between his fathers and holds Alec tight. Magnus rests his head on Max's back as he holds Alec's arm.

Max falls asleep listening to his father's heart beating. Alec falls asleep a few minutes later.

Magnus lays awake staring out the window, wondering what Max saw. He finally falls asleep as the sun starts to rise.

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Max opens his eyes and sits up. Magnus is still asleep but Alec is gone. He gets out the bed carefully so he doesn't wake his father and runs out the room.

Alec isn't in the loft. Max's eyes dart around the living room as his right thumb runs across his fingertips.

"Blueberry, what's the matter?"

Max turns to Magnus, "Poppa, Daddy isn't here."

"He's at work, we over slept. It's not that big of a deal, Max."

"Daddy's going to die."

Magnus tenses as he closes his eyes. He slowly opens them and walks over to Max, "When?"

Max shakes his head, "I don't know, but he will die and we will be alone."

Magnus holds his son, "Is this what your nightmare was about last night?"

Max nods as he holds Magnus tight, "I couldn't see details, but he was on a bed, dead."

Magnus swallows, "How?"

"I don't know, Poppa. He was just laying there, not breathing, pale, I could hear somebody crying in the distance." Max blinks as tears run down his face, "I couldn't see you or me or anybody, just him laying there."

Magnus nods. He holds Max's face in his hands, "Then it's only a nightmare, nothing more."

"But..."

Magnus kisses his son's forehead then gently wipes away his tears, "If it had been a vision, you would have seen details. It was only a horrible nightmare."

Max's eyes fill with tears as he looks at his father, "Why does Daddy have to die?"

Magnus holds Max tight, "Because mortals die regardless of who they marry or who they have as children."

"It's not fair, Poppa."

"I know Max, I know. But we can only thank the Mistress for the time she allows your Daddy to be with us."

"And then you marry somebody else?"

Magnus shakes his head as he holds Max tight, "I can't think of loving somebody as much as I love your Daddy."

"I need both of you, Poppa."

"I know, Max. There will come a time when he will leave us, but not for a very long time."

"I hope so, Poppa."

Magnus kisses his forehead, "I know so. Now let's get dressed, have breakfast and find something fun to do."

Max raises an eyebrow, "What about school?"

"You're already late, so no school today."

Max nods, "Okay."

Magnus smiles, "Okay."

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Later, after kissing his fathers 'good night' and hugging them tight, Max goes to his room. He sits crosslegged on his bed and closes his eyes. He whispers, "Mistress, I know you are busy and have better things to do than listen to a warlock boy, but me and Poppa love Daddy and we would appreciate it if you didn't take him from us."

Max keeps his eyes closed as tears run down his face, "Poppa said that there was a time when ShadowHunters and DownWorlders hated each other but I love my Daddy and always will. That's why it makes my stomach hurt when I think that there will come a time when he won't be in my life anymore."

Max takes a deep breath and continues, "Daddy is a good man, and Poppa deserves to have him for a long long time. Poppa can't sleep alone anymore and he needs Daddy so that he can get a good night's sleep. If you take Daddy from him, than Poppa is never going to rest again. See it's not just me that needs Daddy, but Poppa too. Thank you for taking time from your duties to listen to me. Please give us this one little thing and I promise I won't ever ask for anything again."

Max opens his eyes and looks at the ceiling. He chews on his lip and wonders how will he know if Mistress Destiny is listening. He wipes his eyes, then sighs. He lays down and closes his eyes. He eventually falls asleep.

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Max opens his eyes. It's still dark out. He sits up and sees somebody sitting at the foot of his bed. It's not Daddy or Poppa. He brings magic to his right hand, "You are in big trouble, who are you?"

His visitor giggles and turns a lamp on with a flick of his hand. Max's eyes widen as he looks at his visitor. His **blue** visitor says calmly, "Hello me."

Max blinks, "Me?"

Older Max nods, "I'm you in about fifty years."

"How?"

"Mistress Destiny sent me here to ease your mind."

Max pushes the sheets off and moves closer to his older self, "Is Daddy okay?"

Older Max nods, "Daddy is alive and well."

Max relaxes, "How's Poppa?"

"Poppa is Poppa."

Max giggles, then covers his mouth, "We are going to wake them up."

Older Max shakes his head, "I've put a soundproof barrier around this room."

"Oh okay, that's good. Do Daddy and Poppa still love each other?"

Older Max's eyes twinkle, "Very much so."

"That's awesome."

"Awesome since the day they met."

Max whispers, "I had a nightmare that Daddy was laying on a bed, dead."

Older Max nods, "That he was."

Max's eyes widen, "Daddy died? How? Why? What about Poppa? What about me, I mean you, I mean, you said Daddy was okay."

Older Max gently holds Max's hands, "He did die but that was a long time ago."

"And?"

"And he didn't _stay _dead."

"Poppa used magic to bring him back?"

Older Max smiles, "It was magic but it wasn't really magic. Poppa used the love rune to bring him back."

"Really?"

"Uh huh and in the process Daddy became immortal."

Max's eyes widen, "Daddy will live forever with Poppa and me?"

Older Max nods, "Yes."

Max giggles, "That's awesome."

"It is."

Max chews on his lip, "What about Aunt Clary, Aunt Izzy and Uncle Jace?"

Older Max smiles, "Aunt Clary created an _Endless Life_ rune."

"Endless Life rune? And they all have it?"

Older Max nods, "Daddy as well."

"You said the love rune made him immortal after he came back from the dead, so why would he need this rune?"

Older Max giggles, "Poppa insisted he get it. You know Poppa."

Max nods, "Poppa would want to make sure Daddy isn't going to leave us."

"Exactly. I drew it on his left calf."

Max giggles, "Daddy has a rune on both legs."

"Uh huh, and they were both drawn by a warlock."

"A blue warlock named Max."

"That's right."

Max narrows his eyes, "Okay, why are you telling me all this. Poppa says that knowing too much about the future is bad and can lead to changing something unwittingly."

Older Max smiles, "Poppa also says, I'm too smart for my own good."

"You are going to wipe my memory of you."

Older Max tilts his head, "That's not a question."

"No it's not."

Older Max nods, "Yes I will be. Mistress wants you to be prepared for what is in store for you and she thought it would be best if you weren't so stressed over Daddy."

Max's eyes narrow, "In store for me?"

Older Max's eyes sparkle, "Many worlds are out there to explore."

"So?"

"In each of these worlds, there's an Alec Lightwood and Magnus Bane madly in love. So freaking awesome."

Max giggles, "Lots of kissing?"

"Oh yes, a whole bunch of kissing."

"Awesome."

Older Max nods, "Indeed."

"But if you erase all that you told me, then I'll still be stressed."

"I'm wiping the actual memories but not the happiness you are feeling right now."

Max smiles, "I am happy, knowing that Daddy isn't going to die."

"It's a calmness that will stay with you after I leave."

"Like how Poppa feels when Daddy is around."

Older Max laughs, "Exactly like that." He stands, "Get under the covers."

Max lays down and pulls the bedsheets over him, "I'm ready."

"Close your eyes and get comfortable."

Max closes his eyes with a nod, "Done."

Older Max brings magic to his fingertips and waves his right hand over young Max's head. With a nod, he closes his fist, extinguishing the magic. Young Max is sleeping. Older Max smiles at his younger self, then opens a portal and leaves the bedroom.

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Max opens his eyes and smiles. He gets out the bed and goes into the bathroom to get ready for school. Once he's dressed, he walks into the kitchen.

Magnus and Alec are already there. He kisses both fathers 'good morning', then fills a glass with milk and puts jam on a bagel. He brings his breakfast to the table and sits down.

Magnus smiles, "Somebody's in a good mood this morning."

Max giggles, "I had an awesome dream last night."

Alec smiles, "You want to share?"

Max giggles, "I would love to, but I don't remember it."

Magnus laughs, "Then how do you know it was awesome?"

"Because when I woke up, I felt really happy."

Magnus nods, "Okay then, yeah you."

Max giggles, "Exactly, Poppa. Yeah me."

Alec stands. He kisses the top of Max's head, "Later, blueberry."

Max smiles, "Later, Daddy." Magnus stands as Alec walks over to him. He holds Alec around the waist as they kiss. Max giggles, "Poppa, it's supposed to be a _goodbye_ kiss, not a _let's move this to the bedroom _kiss."

Magnus raises an eyebrow, "A what kiss?"

Max giggles, "Don't act so innocent Poppa."

Alec laughs, "I gotta go." He gives Magnus a quick kiss on the lips. Magnus grabs his shirt and they kiss again.

Max shakes his head, "It doesn't look good when the boss is always late."

Alec laughs as he walks out the loft. Magnus smiles, "I love that man."

Max giggles, "Oh really, I had no idea."

Magnus sniffs, "Young man, you are going to be late for school."

Max giggles as he stands and puts his plate and glass in the sink, "Poppa changing the subject." He snaps his fingers and his bookbag is on the chair. He kisses Magnus' cheek, "Later, Poppa."

"Later, blueberry."

Max grabs his bookbag, opens a portal and leaves the loft.

Magnus smiles as he gathers his and Alec's mugs and walks over to the sink. Dishes then High Warlock duties.

_**the end**_

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Now we can talk about this story.

**A/N1: **As I said, the first two scenes popped into my head and I had NO idea what to do with them. I didn't know how old Max was, but I figured it was before his 'adventures' since Alec's inevitable (or so they all thought) death was weighing on his mind. So I went through the **Max Grows Up in the Rune Series **stories to see where I could fit this in.

**A/N2: **I remembered a comment from _**malecfan27**_ on **Daddy Gets a Rune on his Leg**:

_I can't remember or not but have you done one where adult Max came to see his young self?_

**A/N3: **The first time, Max went into Alec's childhood to save his father was in **Nightmare **when he was almost fourteen.

**A/N4:** Do I need to point out that Magnus was wrong and that Max's nightmare actually WAS a vision of Alec's death. Not in detail (as he said) but close enough.

**A/N5:** Clary's Endless Life Rune is 100% my creation because Clary is THAT awesome.


End file.
